While automatic gluing machines for cardboard boxes and cartons do exist, feed stock is delivered in parallel with the glue line. As such, the longer the glue line, the larger such machines tend to be, increasing the footprint of the equipment, if not the cost.
One attempt at a smaller footprint is described in Published U.S. Application No. 20120028776, entitled Automated Gluing Device. The device includes a support structure upon which a gluing apparatus and a support plate assembly are mounted. The support plate is configured for supporting and aligning a gluable item for gluing and assembly by the gluing apparatus. The gluing apparatus includes a first clamp configured for selectively and securely holding a first portion of the gluable item on the support plate, a glue dispensing nozzle fluidly coupled to a glue supply, and a folding apparatus configured for folding the first portion of the gluable item onto a second portion of the gluable item after glue has been applied. The gluing device is sized and configured to fit within a relatively small area so that the device can be placed in close proximity to other box processing devices. The gluing device is adapted to glue a box blank when the box blank is folded so the glue tab is positioned on an edge of the box blank, thereby eliminating the need for a large frame in order to apply glue to the glue tab.
Gluing devices like the one just described lack various features that impart versatility, including the ability to eject the glued stock in forward or reverse directions.